Blossom in Adversity

C154. The Secrets of the Prince Family.

Chapter 154: The Secrets of the Prince Family

Gu Yanxi looked at her, and after a while, covered his face and laughed silently. Yes, a dull knife is not sharp enough, but only when it is sharpened does it hurt.

These years, he had been blindfolded.

"If I had met you earlier..."

"There's no 'if'. If the Hua family were well, I would have been Mrs. Shen in May of this year."

Gu Yanxi looked at her, her expression candid as if she were talking about someone else. There was no hint of sadness or regret. He couldn't help but ask, "Don't you feel regretful? Patriarch Hua has a good eye, and Shen Qi is outstanding in this generation."

He even felt that if Shen Qi had married Ah Zhi, he would have been able to appreciate her virtues.

Hua Zhi shook her head. Anyone who had even a slight affection for her would not accept it so calmly. In a world where family interests are paramount, Shen Qi's reaction was normal.

Since that was the case, how could she feel regret?

On the contrary, she felt fortunate.

Gu Yanxi's heart, which had been tight, suddenly relaxed, giving him a slight dizziness. But even with this dizziness, he was happy.

Ah Zhi's reaction indicated that Shen Qi had not entered her heart, right?

But what about in Shen Qi's heart?

Gu Yanxi sipped the tea Ah Zhi had poured for him. Even if he had, it was too late.

"Mr. Lu, I have always had a question in my mind."

Gu Yanxi looked up. "I will tell you everything I know."

"You are surnamed Gu, and my grandfather had been in and out of the court for many years. Why didn't he recognize you at the Yingshan Pass?"

Gu Yanxi spun a small purple sand cup in his hand. Just when Hua Zhi thought there might be something he couldn't talk about and tried to change the subject, the man took out a very flat box from his chest and rubbed the edge of the box. He opened it on the small table.

After seeing what was inside, Hua Zhi couldn't help but show a surprised expression. She didn't expect that there would be such a thing as a human skin mask in this world.

There were several thin human skin masks stacked up, about four or five of them.

Gu Yanxi picked up one at random, smoothed it on his face, and flattened the edges with practiced ease. When he put his hand down, a man in his thirties appeared in front of Hua Zhi, with a plain appearance, restrained gaze, and no distinguishing features.

"An official of the seventh rank in the Ministry of Rites, named Chen Nian."

He tore off this mask and applied another one to his face, adjusting his movements and gaze accordingly. This time it was a military general. "Your grandfather should have remembered this one. Wu Liang, a fourth-rank guard with a sword in the Imperial Guards, often accompanied the emperor."

As he pulled the skin upwards, his temples turned red due to his rough actions, but he seemed unaware as he was about to apply another mask when Hua Zhi held onto the box and said, "I understand."

Gu Yanxi's movements halted, and he looked up at her.

Hua Zhi also looked at him, her eyes filled with a reluctance that she was not aware of.

Gu Yanxi smiled. This girl, so smart, but her weaknesses are also too obvious. Once someone pinpoints her vulnerabilities, it's not difficult to manipulate her. But once she feels malice, she will surely fight back, even if both parties end up hurt.

Yet, it was this girl who made him willing to reopen the festering wound in his heart.

Gently removing her hand, he picked up another mask from inside and put it on himself. This time, he took on the appearance of a young man, handsome and aloof. "If I wear this face, your grandfather will surely recognize me as Gu Yanxi, the Shizi."

Hua Zhi was speechless. Even the face he used for his true identity was a disguise.

Gu Yanxi removed this mask. "My father is the Emperor's only younger brother, Gu Yeyan, conferred the title of Prince Ling with land in Yangzhou. I lived there before the age of fifteen. Occasionally coming to the capital was mainly in the palace. When I was fifteen, my grandmother fell seriously ill, and the Emperor summoned our family back to the capital. Later, as my grandmother gradually recovered, we stayed in the capital. Gu Yeyan had no talent or ambition, and the Emperor always tolerated him. But he couldn't stand the worthless teachers Gu Yeyan brought for me and personally took me under his wing to teach me. Even my uncle didn't realize back then that he deliberately wanted to nurture me."

Hua Zhi poured out the tea leaves from the purple sand pot and replaced them with a different kind of tea.

As Gu Yanxi watched her fluid movements, his heart seemed to calm down, and when he spoke of the past, there was no anger as he had imagined.

"He is the Prince Ling. Everyone fawns over him. So when a woman doesn't care about his wealth and power, he finds it rare. That woman was also talented and, after some twists and turns, she managed to control him. He wanted to bring her into the family as a wife, but my mother, from a noble family background, would never agree to let an unknown woman enter the household. Gu Yeyan didn't dare to confront my mother directly, so he had to bide his time."

Gu Yanxi looked down at the shimmering water in the cup. "My mother's marriage to him was not an arranged marriage. After meeting once at my grandmother's, Gu Yeyan tried his best to create opportunities to see her, and they developed feelings for each other, which led to their marriage. It shocked many at the time. But more than ten years later, the man who once pursued her relentlessly now had passionate feelings for another woman. My mother, heartbroken, followed him and allowed him to have his way, and less than half a year later, she passed away."

Hua Zhi was not surprised. In this era, women valued men too highly.

"Poisoned." Seeing her surprise, Gu Yanxi tugged at the corner of his mouth but did not smile. "I know my mother. Even if every drink she had tasted bitter, she would never risk her life. She knew how difficult it was for a child to lose their mother in a large family. I had not yet married, and at that time, Shao Yao was just ten years old. She would have lived on for us. But a minor illness kept her bedridden. What about you, would you investigate?"

Of course, she would investigate! Without a doubt.

Gu Yanxi nodded. "I did. Gu Yeyan had no idea what my uncle had taught me during that year in the capital or how much I had learned. I spent only half a day gathering evidence of his poisoning of my mother. Do you know his reaction? He wanted to kill me. He ordered his guards to take me, regardless of life or death."

Hua Zhi silently poured tea for him. He had a lousy father, she had a lousy mother. It was a fate they shared as children, but she wondered who was more pitiful.

"My position as the heir was not granted by his request for a title, but personally conferred by the Emperor. The guards dare not lay a hand on me. If not for this, I couldn't have escaped the mansion, brought in reinforcements, and later saved Shao Yao from the sea of fire."

Hua Zhi looked up. "Was Shao Yao's face destroyed in there?"

"Yes, Shao Yao is not my legitimate sister. Her mother was my mother's maid given as a dowry, who passed away during her difficult childbirth. My mother took pity on her and raised her by her side, treating her no differently from her own. Shao Yao's rebellious nature was inherited from someone unknown. After the guards were mostly sent out to find me, she secretly set fire to that woman's quarters and even used some strange drug she had obtained, deciding to die together with that woman. If it weren't for that woman's martial skills, Shao Yao's plan might have succeeded."

"Shao Yao..."

"When I returned with people, Gu Yeyan rescued that woman, sustaining some injuries. But in comparison to Shao Yao, they were nothing. When I carried Shao Yao out, she was covered in blood, with cuts all over her face and body, some of the wounds were deep. It was evident how ruthless the attacker was. I wanted to kill that woman, but Gu Yeyan protected her, insisting it wasn't her doing. I almost committed patricide."

Gu Yanxi suddenly smiled. "Later, I thought about it all the time."